Timeless Toys that Fly for Less than $10
Thinking about toys that fly suggests that these toys are expensive but the simple ones are not. The flying toys listed below usually sell for less than $10 each but the fact that we grew up with them suggests that we really enjoyed them when we were kids. They are as fun to play with when compared to some toys that sell for a higher price.
These toys make good training devices for children who want RC airplanes. They can learn the basics of flying first before moving on to the expensive ones. They make good giveaways at children’s parties too. Some of them are even sold by the dozen. They also make great gifts!
Some flying toys are a combination of the 8 basic flying toys listed below. Some of them are also worth less than ten dollars. You may want to check this link too:
1. Kites
Kites are commonly made of paper, plastic, textile or wood. They fly when a wind from the opposite direction blows on the kite and strains the string. The wind hitting the kite then passes through the kite’s bottom which, in turn, provides lift.
You can enjoy flying a kite in two ways: You can make it fly high and watch it as it seem to touch the clouds, and you can also fly it low and then you run around or pull on the strings to keep it from falling. Flying a kite low is more interactive because it requires more attention and control.
2. Gliders
Gliders are toy aircrafts that glide through the air. They do not have engines to assist them in flight. Either you have to throw them to launch them or you have to wind the rubber mechanism to make them fly. Those with propellers that have rubber mechanisms fly because the mechanism turns the propeller as the rubber unwinds.
Gliders are usually made of foams or plastics but there are also those that are made of wood. The ones made of wood are sturdier.They fly at different speeds and some fly slowly while some fly fast. Generally, those that fly slower are more fun to watch.
3. Paper Airplanes
Paper airplanes are gliders too. The only difference is they are made of paper, making them a form of origami, the Japanese art of paper folding. Some paper airplanes, however, involve cutting and are considered as kirigami, the Japanese art of cutting and folding papers.
Making paper airplanes is fun and educational because it teaches kids to make toys from simple papers. Over the years, paper airplane designs have been improved to enhance flight performance or to modify the appearance. When we were kids, we used to bend or fold the backends of the wings a little bit upwards to make them fly longer.
4. Parachutes
Parachutes are devices that help objects fall slowly back to the ground. They are usually made of textiles or plastics that spread whenever an object is falling, creating drag and making the fall slower.
Parachute toys especially the multicolored ones are fun to watch as they descend. Some toys make use of launchers that have rubbers or springs to shoot them in the air. But, if you want to flex those muscles, you can go for the ones that you have to throw upwards.
You can have a game with other kids using manually launched parachutes. You can have a contest on who can throw them the highest before the parachute opens. You can have a game about catching them too!
5. Rockets
Rockets move with great speed. They get their thrust by compressing gases or liquids and then making them come out through a nozzle.
The fuels that rockets run on are called propellants. In spaceships, fuel is burned to create compressed air while, in rocket balloons or stomp rockets, compression is achieved by filling a container with air or water to the brink of exploding. When the compressed air or liquid goes out through the nozzle, the rocket moves forward.
Rockets are fun to watch as they shoot through the air.
6. Flying Discs
Frisbees, as it is commonly called, is a trademark of the Wham-O toy company. They are usually plastic flying discs that hover when given a spin as you throw them. These discs fly because of their shape. The spin generates lift because the carved out bottom draws in air as it spins. With more air under the disc than over it, it flies.
These flying discs are fun toys for catch and play. Dogs enjoy them when they are properly trained. You can also have fun with other kids by playing a game about who can throw it the farthest. Whether by playing catch or distance throwing, these toys will definitely give you an exercise. Bring them along when going to the beach or park.
7. Dragonflies
Dragonflies are T-shaped toys, like mini-propellers set on a stick. Using your hands, they fly when you spin them because of the mini-propeller set on top. When the dragonfly spins, the propeller cuts through the air and drives air downward generating lift. Without this spinning motion, the dragonfly descends back to the ground.
Dragonflies are fun to play with because they are so simple, consisting of only two parts, and yet they fly. Kids have fun making them fly and then chasing them around. These toys develop good eye-hand coordination.
8. Boomerangs
Not all boomerangs return to the thrower. Those used for hunting usually never return. For kids though, returning boomerangs are more fascinating. You throw them in one direction and they come back from another, making an elliptical pattern.
Boomerangs return because they 'wiggle' on their axis as they rotate during flight. This 'wiggle' is what makes boomerangs fly on a curved path. When thrown properly, they continue to take this curved path until, finally, they return back to the thrower.
Here is a video on how to make an origami boomerang: